


Where There's a Will, There's a Way

by McKayRulez



Series: Bi11y [1]
Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Billy Hargrove & Eleven | Jane Hopper Friendship, Billy Hargrove Lives, Billy Hargrove Needs a Hug, Billy is Alive, Character Death Fix, Episode: s03e08 The Battle of Starcourt, Explanations, Extended Scene, Family Reunions, Gen, Good Parent Joyce Byers, Post-Episode: s03e08 The Battle of Starcourt, Presumed Dead, Reunions, Season/Series 03, The Upside Down, Will Byers Has Powers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-23
Updated: 2019-07-23
Packaged: 2020-07-11 17:14:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19931614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/McKayRulez/pseuds/McKayRulez
Summary: Just as Joyce, Jonathan, Will and Eleven are leaving Hawkins, Will senses something entering their world from the upside down.





	Where There's a Will, There's a Way

El and Will gazed sadly outside the window, as they drove out of Hawkins. 

As Joyce continued to drive, Will got an unusual feeling and it kept growing, until he was visibly shivering. 

Joyce peered up at the driver mirror and looked at her son. She knew he was taking the move hard. “Will?.. You okay?” 

“Feel something.. Something is here.. Or.. Trying to get here.” 

His mom’s eyes widened and she immediately veered to the side of the road and stepped on the breaks. The cars behind her swerved and honked loudly. Jonathan pulled the car over and parked behind them as Joyce unbuckled her seat and faced the kids. 

“What is it?” She asked frantic. 

“I.. I don’t know..” 

Jonathan went up to the window. “Mom, what’s going on?” 

El stared at Will. “It’s not the mind flayer?” 

“No.” He shook his head and ran a hand over his neck. “Doesn’t feel like him.” 

“Where is it?” She placed her hands. “Where do you feel it coming from?” 

“We’re close..” He shivered. “Real close.” 

Jonathan looked to his mom worried, as she turned back to the wheel and turned the keys restarting the car. “We need to go. Now!” 

“Mom!” Jonathan leaned over the window. “We need to warn everyone!” 

“I won’t let it kill you too!” Joyce yelled. Then fought back tears when she thought of Hopper. “This is why we’re leaving in the first place! So we can be done with all of this!” 

“What about Nancy? What about the kids?” 

She paused. Then sighed. “I’ll go alone.” Joyce sniffed. “Jonathan. You take the kids. I’ll meet you in the hotel parking lot.” 

“Mom?” 

“Go!” 

Will looked up. “I don’t think it’s dangerous.” 

“You sure?” El asked watching him carefully. 

“Yeah.. It feels..” He closed his eyes trying to concentrate on what his upside down senses were telling him. “Human..” He opened his eyes. “Mostly human.. At least..” 

Jonathan looked from his brother to his mother. “See, mom. You don’t have to go alone. It’ll be okay.” 

She stared down at the wheel. “You don’t know that.” 

“And I don’t know that if you go by yourself it we’ll ever see you again.” He countered. 

El grimaced and felt a stab at her heart at that. 

Joyce said nothing, as she laid her head against the wheel. Jonathan turned and looked back at Will and Eleven. “WHat direction?” 

Will looked distant in thought then answered, “Towards cherry oak.” 

Jonathan paused. The street was familiar. “Steel works..” He quickly turned and went into his car. 

Will stared at his mom, who was so quiet and unmoving. “Mom?..” He leaned forward in his seat and placed a hand on his mom’s shoulder. 

She sniffled and bobbed her head. “I.. I’m okay.” She patted his hand on her shoulder and then tried to pull herself together, before continuing on driving. 

They pulled up at Brimborn Steel Works and even El felt a chill and she rubbed her arms. 

Joyce turned and looked at the kids. “Stay in the car.” 

“No.” El answered bluntly. 

“We’re going with you.” Will replied. 

She sighed and turned back to the entrance. “Stay behind us then, okay?” 

They slowly got out of the car and Joyce and Jonathan took the lead. 

Jonathan shined his flashlight around the building, as the family gazed around the dark interior. 

El gazed around until she caught sight of a bump in the wall. Jonathan’s flashlight caught the crest of the bend and it appeared see through and fleshy. Something or someone humanoid shaped was trying to push their way out. She ran over to it. 

Joyce heard her fleeting footsteps and looked down where she had been. “El?” She caught sight of her. “El!” 

Jonathan swerved to face them and finally the whole wall was exposed. 

Joyce put a hand to her lips. “This.. This is just like when Will was-” She glanced down at him and watched him run up to it. 

“Someone’s trying to escape the upside down!” Will yelled. “We have to help them!” 

Jonathan dug into his pockets for a pocket knife and while he cut into the wall the other three tugged at the fleshy translucent wall until it broke open enough that the exhausted person on the other side fell out unto the ground, in a sludge of black oozing water, coughing. 

El stared down at him wide eyed. “Billy?” 

Billy glanced up at her for a second before his eyes rolled back and he collapsed unconscious. 

Will and his family looked at each other bewildered. Then Joyce went out to the telephone booth outside and called Dr. Owens and Max. Then Jonathan called Nancy. All the while, El continued to stare at Billy unmoving and unable to speak. 

\-- 

At the hospital, Eleven sat at Billy’s side while he lay unconscious on a hospital bed. She kept a grasp on his hand. Making sure he was still there.  
Still.. Real.  
Still.. Warm blooded. 

“What’s going on!?” Joyce yelled, tossing her hands in the air, as she vented. She gestured to the bed as she leaned forward at Dr. Owens. “That boy in there was dead!” 

Max stared at his still fingers, as El brought her other hand on his, trying to keep him warm between both hands. Max then glanced up at his still peaceful face, still in quiet shock. 

Joyce shook her head. “Was.. Was this another cover up?!” She got in his face. “Like Will?!” She pointed at his chest. “You’re no better than Dr. Brenner!” 

Sam Owens raised his hands and clipboard defensively. “We didn’t fake a body, Ms. Byers!” 

“He died.” Max replied emptily. “I.. I saw it..” 

“He died saving me.” El added. 

Joyce and Sam looked at the poor children in shock for a moment sadly, the Joyce turned back to Sam. “Explain to us what the hell is going on!?” She yelled furious. 

“I..” Dr. Owens looked timid. “I might have an answer to that..” 

Jonathan crossed his arms and Nancy was already ready with a notebook and pen. “Then tell us, Dr. Owens.” She questioned calmly and kindly. 

Dr. Owens looked at the notebook warily then cleared his throat. “The Billy who died.. When we did an autopsy there.. There was some unusual signs..” 

Max looked up abruptly. “What do you mean?” 

“He didn’t appear..” Dr. Owens paused trying to figure out how to explain properly. “Like a regular human.. First sign was his blood was black.. We thought that was left over from the Mind Flayer.. Which it probably was.. But as the autopsy continued.. His lungs were.. Different..” He squinted, trying to break it down to how an average person would understand instead of medical terminology. “Stronger.. A more filtered system then anything on this planet has ever evolved. There was also an unusual grown in his mind.. We thought it was a tumor, but on closer inspection it wasn’t.” 

“The Mind Flayer was manipulating people's bodies..” Nancy added. “Making them eat chemicals… We already know that.” 

“But this wasn’t a manipulation.. We did a test between Billy and the leftover remains of the body masses that formed the Flayer weapon, trying to figure out how Billy stayed in one piece compared to the other’s after the Flayer died. The reason was.. His body was more dense. His DNA blueprint was fundamentally different than the others that were mutated.”

“What are you trying to say?” Joyce asked. 

“We think.. The person who died those months ago.. Was someone who didn’t evolve on this world.. Someone who evolved to survive a much harsher environment.” 

“An upside down Billy?” Will announced wide eyed, and Max stared at her Billy confused. 

El shook her head. “No.. It was him. I saw into his memories.” 

“It’s possible that’s what the brain mass was for.. Sort of.. Connection from the upside down Billy to our Billy.” 

“But.. Why would it do that?” Joyce asked confused. 

Will looked up at his mother. “To blend in.. More intel… A spy like I was..” 

Jonathan frowned. “But he didn’t make a clone of you?” 

“No. But he lost me on this side. Maybe he wanted to be sure that next time he could keep someone with knowledge of our world in his to exploit.” 

Dr. Owens nodded and pointed at Will, as Nancy scribbled more notes. “Yes. That’s possible.”

“So..” Max looked uncertain. “It was never Billy?.. But he seemed so.. Him..” 

“No, it was.. In a sense. I think the mass also acted as a sort of controller too.. Not just for information but to blend in properly it connected to the Billy on that side so he’d be just as your Billy to not draw attention.” 

“An avatar.” Will looked to Max. “Like our video games. He was in control, but it wasn’t his body.” 

Max nodded and the group looked down at Billy. 

“Poor Billy.” El spoke up suddenly. “Trapped in the upside down for months.. And no one was looking for him.” 

Billy stirred and the group took a collective breath as they watched him slowly awaken. “H.. Huh?..” He blinked and squinted in the brightness of the upside world, so unlike the darkness he had gotten used too. “M.. Max?” He blinked and looked between the two girls on both sides of his bed. “El?” 

Max teared up, and slowly smiled and quickly hugged him, to his confusion. 

El gave a sad smile. “Welcome home Billy.”


End file.
